United States
Inflation Calculator: What Is Your Money Worth Today?
Use LocalInflation’s U.S. Inflation Calculator to compare the value of money across years, see how prices changed nationally, and understand whether wages kept up with inflation. Enter an amount, choose a starting year and ending year, and get a clear estimate based on public CPI data.
This page uses a U.S. national CPI series for broad purchasing-power estimates.
What this local calculator does
The United States inflation calculator estimates how prices changed over time using the best available public CPI data. Where direct local CPI is unavailable, LocalInflation labels the closest available metro, regional, or national proxy.
Inflation calculator
Enter your information
Any available year to any available year
CPI data for United States is available from 1997 to 2026. Reverse comparisons are supported.
$100.00 in 2010 equals
$140.44 in 2026
That means prices rose about 40.4% over this period.
Inflation
40.4%
Based on CPI values 208.7 and 293.2.
Wages beat inflation
Wage vs inflation
Wage gap 39.1%
Average wages rose 79.6% while prices rose 40.4%. The gap compares wage growth directly against inflation growth.
Future estimate
$109.14
$100.00 today may need this amount by 2030 under the baseline scenario.
Cost growth rank
#18 of 51
Ranked against the LocalInflation location list for the selected years.
Wage gap rank
#27 of 51
Higher rank means wage growth outpaced inflation by more.
Inflation over time
Consumer Price Index (CPI) history
CPI is the Consumer Price Index, a public measure of how prices change over time for a basket of goods and services.
Wage chart
Wages with wage growth vs wages if kept at inflation
Data source note: CPI values use Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI series where available. Wage values are structured as generated placeholders until verified BLS/OEWS wage series are connected.
Year-over-year rates
Nominal wage growth and inflation rate
Selected period: nominal wages rose 79.6% while prices rose 40.4%. This chart shows year-over-year rates so users can see when wages and inflation move differently instead of only seeing the cumulative gap.
What this means
Your selected amount needs to be about $140.44 in 2026 to buy what $100.00 bought in 2010.
If your income grew less than 40.4% over that time, your real purchasing power declined.
Quick examples
$1.00 then
= $1.40
in 2026
$100.00 then
= $140.44
in 2026
$1,000 then
= $1,404
in 2026
$50,000 then
= $70,222
in 2026
$100,000 then
= $140,445
in 2026
Future Cost Index
Scenario estimate through 2030
4 years forward
Low
$107.80
1.9% annual scenario
Baseline
$109.14
2.2% annual scenario
High
$112.69
3.0% annual scenario
Future Cost Index is a scenario estimate based on historical public data. It is not financial, investment, employment, or legal advice.
How to read this page
Enter a dollar amount and two years. The calculator estimates how much money you would need in the later year to buy about the same amount of goods and services as in the earlier year.
FAQ
What is an inflation calculator?
It estimates how much money from one year is worth in another year using CPI data.
How do you calculate inflation?
LocalInflation multiplies your amount by the ratio of CPI in the comparison year to CPI in the base year.
What does CPI mean?
CPI means Consumer Price Index, a public measure of price changes over time.
What is a base year?
A base year is the year you start from.
Can I choose any starting year?
Yes. You can choose any year available in the selected location’s CPI series.
How much has inflation changed since 2020?
Choose 2020 as the base year and the latest available year as the comparison year to see the current estimate.
How much salary do I need to keep up with inflation?
Your income needs to rise at least as much as prices rose over the same period.
Are local inflation rates different from national inflation?
They can be. LocalInflation labels when a metro, regional, or national CPI series is used.
Can this predict future prices?
No. Future Cost Index scenarios are estimates based on historical public data, not predictions.
Methodology note
LocalInflation estimates purchasing power by comparing CPI index values across the years you choose and applying that ratio to your dollar amount.